Do You Tip For Take-Out?

[LarryG]

An interesting thread topic, shamelessly stolen from another forum I frequent:

When you buy take-out food or coffee or similar, do you tip the staff -- either by adding something on to the check, or by dropping money into a tip jar?

When I buy a coffee at the local bookstore, I drop my change into the tip jar. I'm in there often enough that a couple of the barista-ladies know me on sight, and usually have a pleasant few words for me. The large Americano I usually buy is something like $2.20 with tax, so I drop what's left over out of three singles into the jar.

Otherwise, I don't tip for take-out. I'm particularly bemused when you pay for take-out with a credit card and it includes the usual GRATUITY blank line. I tip for good service, not for transaction processing. ("Hey, nice job swiping my card! Here's 15 percent for you!" Um, I don't think so.) I just strike a line through that and carry the food total down as the grand total.

I recognize that many of the people who work in these places are young and struggling and desperately need every dime they can get, but giving away money when nothing was done to earn it is an inappropriate message that I refuse to send.

What do YOU do?

[BigguyZ]

Tipping is one of those things that really gets me. Tipping is supposed to be a sign of grattitude for the person providing excellent customer service. How and when it changed to an obligatory task is beyond me and my years. But I find it rediculous and silly. Take-out especially. But even for resturaunts, if I'm not getting good service, I tip less than the standard 15%.

I like to leave tips if the person deserves it. But it annoys me that the meaning and "speacialness" of it has been taken away.

[scorrpio]

If it's a random place take-out, no tip. If it's a place where I am a frequent customer, both taking out and staying in, I tip. Last take out in a sushi place I favor, I got a nice surprise - they included an extra appetiser I really like but did not order that time as 'compliments of the house'.

[ChrisD]

I tip for take-out only at places that I have been going to for a long time, which are very few. Of course, I don't give the usual 15% that I do when dining in. To me, good customer service can be subjective. When the place has my food ready for pick-up exactly when they say it's going to be ready, that could mean a lot: Especially when I'm double-parked on Clark Street on a Cubs game night.

[sacherjj]

I'm annoyed by both sides of this issue. First, in a non-take-out sense, it is assumed that your dinner costs regular price + tax + 15-18%, REGARDLESS of quality of service. But if you give less than that, you feel like a jerk, because wait staff makes crappy money for a hard job and not even paid minimum wage as a base pay.

For take-out, I rarely tip. They make the food and I take it. Delivery, a tip is required. Of course, 3 times out of the last 6, my rice was missing by the time i got home, so they don't deserve a tip for quite a while.

[LarryG]

First, in a non-take-out sense, it is assumed that your dinner costs regular price + tax + 15-18%, REGARDLESS of quality of service. But if you give less than that, you feel like a jerk

I don't feel like a jerk, for exactly the reason BigguyZ stated: a tip is supposed to be a reward for exemplary service, not a given. I'm not insensitive to the issue of low wages but that's between management and employee and beyond my control. Tipping, OTOH, is between the employee and me.

I have been known to leave a nickel or a dime when I got some seriously crappy service, just to send the message that No, I did not forget the tip.

[Tom Slick]

I completely agree with you Larry. I don't tip for doing a really good job of running the cash register even if their wages are low. if that were the case we need to tip at the department store, the convenience store, home depot, the gas station, etc. when is the last time you tipped the janitor for doing a great job?
on the other hand I do tip very well for good service at a restraunt and I don't tip well if the service was bad. I also tip for delivery but not at the level I tip a good waitress/waiter.

here is a question that goes along with the topic, do you tip for drinks at a bar? what about drinks served with dinner. some folks do tip and others deduct the drink amount out of the bill before figuring the tip amount. around here it is not hard to rack up $40-50 in drinks for 4 people out to dinner.

[Tom Miller]

...my rice was missing by the time i got home...

I've had food missing by the time I got home, too....

But, seriously, I don't tip for take-out. I sometimes draw a line through the "tip" section of the CC slip, and sometimes just leave it blank. I assume that shows up just because it's in the software; I don't think they expect to receive a tip.

I could see dropping change into a barista's cup if I could get the slightest inkling they knew the first thing about coffee. In other words, I rarely tip a barista. (Well, I rarely buy pre-made coffee, to be honest.)

Regards,
Tom

[ejs1097]

I used to be a waiter. It isn't easy keeping track of everyone at everytable in different stages of dining, and doing it all with a smile. And the pay was about 60% of mininum wage. I tip for good service. If you are good I usually give 20%, average 15%, otherwise less.

I get annoyed with tip jars that people put out for doing their job (non sit down resturants). You see them everywhere here from coffee shops to car washes. I should I tip someone for drying my car or pouring coffee? The service was very quick and they are paid accordingly (not less then mininum wage, etc). There are even tip jars at the sports areanas in town at the consession stands.

I worked at a family resturant in the 90s. Checks for 2 people were usually around $15 so a $2 tip was average. Now when my wife and I eat out a 15% tip is usually more then $5.00 uncanny. Servers at Olive Garden, Outback, and such resturants probably go home with more on a Friday night then I made all week.

[Ed62]

Most of our meals are fixed by my wife. When we do get something out, I do not tip for take home. If we're in a restaurant, and we get good service, I usually tip around 25%, never less than 20% (unless really bad service), and at times up to 30%.

One of my daughters is a waitress in a local restaurant, and has been employed there for about 10 years. Because of her, I know it's a hard job. So other waitresses get the benefit of my knowing it too.

Ed

[TheRic]

I normally give a 12% - 20% tip for food and drinks when staying in a place to consume the items. I normally round the change up, and then add the dollars. So the bill is an even dollar amount.

I have left only a couple of pennies as tip (service is VERY bad), when I know it's the waiter/waitress's fault. If the place is busy, and the service is slow, and you can see them busting to help everyone that is one thing. If the place is dead, the help just yakking in the corner, and you can't get waited on, a refill, etc. that is another.

Tips on take-out nope. To me that is like walking in your local hardware store to get a screw, and tipping the checkout person on the way out.

For those that tip on take-out: Our local McDonald's has three windows (all in a row) they use when busy. You place your order at one, you pay at the next window, you pickup your order at the third window. Who the heck would you tip?? All Three???

[430752]

not usually, but

I don't normally tip in take out places almost as a rule. In fact, it is a rule for places like a pizza joint, duncan donuts, starbucks, etc. Iagree that this is their job and wouldn't tip there anymore than at Kinkos or McDonalds.

But I will tip for a real restaurant which does take out on a limited basis. What I mean is the restaurant that is really, honestly a real restaurant but might allow you to order stuff for take out, usually being a real meal with side salad etc. I tip there since I feel that the staff is being paid waiter's wages, which need tips to compensate (as opposed to starbuck, who get a flat hourly rate). I don't tip 10% or 15%, but rather a flat $5 or so, depending on the total bill.

Now, I do have a few oddities: I tip at the carwash, but only for the guys outside who do the post-wash vacuum and drying. These are usually hand wash places, with the group of 10 guys who are there since they're unemployed or looking for extra cash.. I suspect they don't get money except for tips, migrant type work (although not always done by hispanics). I also sometimes tip at the gas station. But you gotta realize Jersey is a full-service state (Well, no check oil or clean windhsield, but they pump for you), no self-serve. This drove me nuts when I moved out here, but you gotta try it. Your state needs it. Lovely, seriously, no gas smell, no dirty hands, no nuthin. And our gas is probably cheaper than everywhere else. Anyway, I don't tip always, btu on a cold night when I;m the only customer and make him get out of his booth, or a rainy night, or if he pays special attention to get mine done quickly.

well, that's me.

curt j.

[TheRic]

.... Delivery, a tip is required......

If the delivery costs the same as me stopping in then I tip, more on a bad night. If they charge for delivery, no tip.

....here is a question that goes along with the topic, do you tip for drinks at a bar? what about drinks served with dinner.

If I'm in the place drinking either sitting at the bar, someone brings drinks to the table, or I go up to the bar to get a drink (or a round) I tip. If I order drinks with my meal (before, during, after) I tip. The drink (water, coffee, milk, OJ, Beer, Alcohol) is part of the meal. Or in some cases THE meal.

...... I also sometimes tip at the gas station. But you gotta realize Jersey is a full-service state (Well, no check oil or clean windhsield, but they pump for you), no self-serve. This drove me nuts when I moved out here, but you gotta try it. Your state needs it. Lovely, seriously, no gas smell, no dirty hands, no nuthin. And our gas is probably cheaper than everywhere else. Anyway, I don't tip always, btu on a cold night when I;m the only customer and make him get out of his booth, or a rainy night, or if he pays special attention to get mine done quickly....

Didn't know it was required in any state. There are times I which I had a chance for full service, like when nicely dressed, going someplace nice, etc. Other times the tightwad in me kicks in and I want to save the money. Last time I saw full service, about 5 years ago, the place was about 20 cents higher per gallon then the place down the road.

[djmst38]

Tips

From my experience in the food service industry as a cook and waiter at a family restaurant the tips that you give on a take out order do not go to the person who rings you out. They go to the person(s) who took the time to pack your food, check the order, get utensils, get condiments, get drinks, get sides, make salads etc etc. From my experience this is usually a waiter or waitress. Take out orders can be very simple such as a burger and fries and a drink but the real work comes when a family of 8 orders 8 dinners to go.

[ChongoChingi]

I normally tip pretty well but what I dont understand is the "delivery charge" for pizza. Does this go to the driver or is this given to the company? When I tip the driver I assume they are getting this money so I deduct that from what I am going to give them.